The present invention relates to an accessory for use with a bed, in particular a camping cot, for storing a user's personal items.
Camping has become a very common recreational activity. One of the problems faced by campers is the absence of places to store their personal items. Virtually all cots upon which campers sleep simply consist of a frame supported by a number of legs and a sleeping surface attached to the frame. U.S. Pat. No. 800,530 to Young illustrates this kind of cot structure. Young differs from most cots however in that it includes four corner posts and a pair of parallel side bars for supporting a canopy structure such as mosquito netting. U.S. Pat. No. 665,299 to Wood illustrates a collapsible bed having a similar post and frame system for supporting a canopy.
In hospital situations, it is common to have poles attached to beds to support I.V. bags and other medical equipment. U.S. Pat. No. 1,865,757 to Honsowetz; U.S. Pat. No. 2,889,561 to Martin; U.S. Pat. No. 3,334,360 to Hoxeng et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 3,835,486 to Benoit et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,686,727 to Wilkinson; U.S. Pat. No. 5,094,418 to McBarnes, Jr. et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,375,276 to Nelson et al. illustrate some of these pole devices and the manner in which they are attached to a bed.
It has also been suggested in the prior art to provide a bed with a clothes rack attachment. U.S. Pat. No. 2,593,567 to Keck illustrate such an attachment.
Despite the existence of these devices, no one has developed an accessory for storing personal items, such as clothing, firearms, and binoculars, during camping which can be used with a wide variety of cots used by campers.